Despite their attempts to charge Antonio Love with disorderly conduct – a charge the presiding magistrate would not allow – Alabama police are now in the unenviable position of having to try to explain why they used overwhelming force to subdue a deaf and mentally disabled man. Names of the Mobile, Alabama police officers have not been released at this time and details of the event are still fairly vague.
What has been reported thus far is that officers were attempting to get Mr. Love to come out of a department store bathroom when, after repeated attempts, he would not open the door. At that point, officers shot pepper spay under the door, then broke the door down and hit love with the stun gun before arresting him.
Officers said they had no idea that Love was deaf or disabled prior to subduing him in the bathroom. On the surface, this act seems horrible and over-reactionary on the part of the Mobile, Alabama police department.
But if you look just a bit closer, you can probably imagine the uncertainty and fear that would grip officers as they repeatedly demand a response from behind a closed door – and that response never comes. Officers would have no idea at that point whether Love was armed or exactly what he was doing on the other side of the door. So in order to protect themselves, they used non-deadly force in order to get to Love and subdue him. Of course, it’s quite possible that Love never resisted in any way and that he was purely a victim in this instance. For now, it’s just another black eye for law enforcement.
